AMBODE AND LAGOS’RISING PROFILE
According to a recent statistics, about 23 million people inhabit Lagos while about 86 others move into the city every hour. Due to this massive rate of urbanisation, Lagos experiences severe pressure on its infrastructure.
In spite of this, Lagos remains resilient; instead of being traumatised, the city-state has transited from being a symbol of disorder to a reference point in governance in the country. Presently, the state is under the visionary leadership of Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode whose administration is committed to transforming the state to the third largest economy in Africa.
Towards achieving this, the Ambode administration is creating the enabling environment that will sustain Lagos status as the commercial and financial hub of West Africa.
A key driver of this mission is massive infrastructure development in critical sectors of the state’s economy. Recently, the state government commenced the process of awarding contracts for the construction of a total of 181 community roads across the 57 Local Government Areas (LGAs) and Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) in the state.
The initiative to rehabilitate the roads within the communities was introduced in 2016 to fast-track development simultaneously with other major road projects across the state.
Through the project, a total of 114 roads were either constructed or rehabilitated, two per each of the 57 council areas, in 2016. It is in a bid to consolidate on the success of the initiative thus far that the state government is increasing the number of roads to be rehabilitated or constructed from 114 to 181.
Presently, the list of concluded and on-going infrastructure development projects in the state is endless. Indeed, the tale around town now is that Lagos has become one huge construction site. From Abule-Egba to Agege, from Ikorodu to Epe, from Yaba to Ajah, from Iyana Oworo to Ojodu Berger and all across the state, visible infrastructure projects are massively on-going.
Realising the role of stable power supply in moving the state’s economy to desired height, the Ambode administration has devised strategies to improve power supply in the state. Though power is on the exclusive list of the federal government, considering its centrality to the economic development and growth of the state, the state government is justifiably desirous of intervening in the sector.
Governor Ambode recently acknowledged that the major problem of power is transmission and advocated an embedded power initiative that would allow clusters of Independent Power Projects (IPP) to run in cities. According to the governor, the quest by the country to achieve energy security can no longer be left for the federal government alone to address. Therefore, Lagos has developed a plan to attain 24-hour power supply through the generation of 3000 megawatts of electricity by 2022. The embedded power initiative of the state government was designed to permanently resolve power crisis in the state
Waste management is equally receiving top attention. This is quite understandable as a 2008 report estimates that Lagos generates about 9,000 metric tonnes of waste daily. But a more recent report has, however, put the waste generated daily in the state at 10,000 metric tonnes, almost three times higher than what the whole of Ghana generates daily. A major headache for successive administrations in the state has been how to device appropriate and efficient waste management mechanism that would enhance a cleaner, safer and healthier environment. This is why the Ambode administration is embarking on a reform in the state’s waste management system in partnership with the private sector.
Unemployment is equally being addressed in the state through diverse strategic platforms. One of such is the N25 billion Lagos State Employment Trust Fund. Governor Ambode recently presented cheques worth about N1billion to 705 beneficiaries of the Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (ETF) pilot scheme, charging them to utilise the funds responsibly to grow their businesses, create jobs for the unemployed youths and contribute to the growth of the Lagos economy. At the event, the governor revealed that the ETF was established to address the challenge of unemployment as well as provide support to youths, entrepreneurs, artisans and other unemployed residents of the state.
The promotion of T.H.E.S.E (Tourism, Hospitality, Entertainment, Sports for Excellence) is also another platform through which the state government is empowering Lagos residents. T.H.E.S.E is an initiative conceived basically to grow the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the state and offer wider opportunities to operatives of the sector.